Either way, expect Hayes to take a few chances in coverage. That's his style.

"I gamble because I feel like I prepare for it," Hayes told NJ Advance Media last week. "I watch a lot of film. So if I see something, I don't second-guess it. The position I play, you can't play passive with it. You have to be aggressive."

Hayes nearly had an interception against Nebraska when he laid out full-extension for a pass that went off his fingertips. He appeared to run the deep route better than the wide receiver.

Later in the game, filling in for Austin, the sophomore was beaten on a dig route to the inside that went for Nebraska's go-ahead 8-yard touchdown by speedster De'Mornay Pierson-El.

"Slot is different because it's a 50/50 go," Hayes said. "You don't get the sideline for help. There is a lot of speed in the slot. You get your bigger, stronger guys outside. You get your smaller, faster, shiftier guys in the slot."

Though he is second on the team with three pass break-ups, Hayes was victimized for a 51-yard reception by Washington and flagged for two pass interference calls against Eastern Michigan. It's part of the Chris Ash-accepted risk-reward involved in playing in press man-to-man coverage.

"I trust my reads. I trust myself," said Hayes, under the wing of cornerbacks coach Henry Baker. "My coach (Baker) always said, 'If you are going to jump it, then you have to make a play.' If I don't make a play, I look forward to it more. If I don't make it, I'll come back next time."

Because Hayes has more space to cover over the middle of the field than Austin or Wharton, his name is more likely to flash. For good or bad.

"You put everything in the back of your mind," Hayes said, "because if you go in there thinking, 'This is my game,' they'll throw a bomb on you quick."

He is completing 63.3 percent of his passes with 10 touchdowns and one interception, though five of those scores came as the struggling offense got healthy against woeful UNLV.

"There's a lot of plays to be made in the slot," Hayes said in training camp. "There is a lot of opportunity there as far the quarterback doesn't even see you and you come out of nowhere. I'm not going to say that (anticipation) is pretty much what it is as a whole, but that's a lot of it.

"I was young in the system and didn't know what I was doing," Hayes said. "Those guys (Austin and Wharton) took me under their wing and helped me out. I feel like we're all on the same playing field mentally, and that allows us to go out and compete."

There was no official word on Austin's status. Ash didn't rule out a potential long-term absence for the 2018 NFL Draft hopeful.

If Hayes is forced to play on the outside, losing his approach to the slot could be nearly as big as losing Austin. Walk-on Zane Campbell filled in for Hayes against Nebraska. Or Rutgers could go with more of former safety-turned-linebacker Ross Douglas.

"We feel like we have three corners that start," Ash said. "Where it probably limited us was in our third-down ability to go nickel stuff. It took us out of that a little bit."